Helaman 10:1

And it came to pass that there arose a division among the people, insomuch that they divided hither and thither and went their ways, leaving Nephi alone, as he was standing in the midst of them.

I have always been impressed with the drama of this scene. The people become so caught up in their arguments about Nephi that they forget he is even present. In stead of listening to him, they would rather hold theoretical debates about the merits of his words. Do we ever get so caught up in talking about the prophet that we forget to listen to him? Does he become an intellectual figurehead whom we reverence like an idol but miss the vital messages he has to offer? We are blessed to have a living prophet on the earth today. Let's not get so caught up in the man that we miss the message.

Helaman 9:18

And it came to pass that the five were liberated on the day of the burial. Nevertheless, they did rebuke the judges in the words which they had spoken against Nephi, and did contend with them one by one, insomuch that they did confound them.

The truth boldly spoken can confound the most devious lies. The bearer of truth must be steadfast and diligent, however, to get the better of sophisticated liars. He cannot waver or doubt. If he weakens, the subtle lies will fool even the very elect. The hope is, however, that the honest in heart will respond to the message of truth. We must therefore be strong in the truth.

Helaman 9:2

Behold, now we will know of a surety whether this man be a prophet and God hath commanded him to prophesy such marvelous things unto us. Behold, we do not believe that he hath; yea, we do not believe that he is a prophet; nevertheless, if this thing which he has said concerning the chief judge be true, that he be dead, then will we believe that the other words which he has spoken are true.

The rationale in this verse is that if a prophet is right about small things, it is a testament that he is also right about the important things. Prophecies are useful in and of themselves, but they are a means to an end, that end being faith in the words of the prophets when they testify of Christ. All the predictions in the world are useless unless they bring us to Christ and strengthen our faith in him.

Living prophets in our day can be put to the same test. They have prophesied of financial calamities, moral decay, and the disintegration of the family. As we see these prophecies come to pass, we must awaken to the truly important prophecy--the prophecy of every prophet in every age, namely, that Christ will come to rule and reign forever. Every day is one day closer to the fulfillment of that all-important prophecy.

Helaman 8:20

And behold, also Zenock, and also Ezias, and also Isaiah, and Jeremiah, (Jeremiah being that same prophet who testified of the destruction of Jerusalem) and now we know that Jerusalem was destroyed according to the words of Jeremiah. O then why not the Son of God come, according to his prophecy?

The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. A seer may predict many things, and a prophet may receive many revelations, but the ultimate purpose of all prophecy and revelation is to testify of Christ, the atonement, and the resurrection. As helpful as other knowledge may be, knowing that Jesus is the Christ and has paid for our sins is the supreme knowledge of time and eternity. Anything else a prophet may reveal is merely evidence that his testimony of Christ is true.

Helaman 8:18

Yea, and behold I say unto you, that Abraham not only knew of these things, but there were many before the days of Abraham who were called by the order of God; yea, even after the order of his Son; and this that it should be shown unto the people, a great many thousand years before his coming, that even redemption should come unto them.

The existence of the restored priesthood is proof that salvation is achievable. Why would God grant men authority to perform saving ordinances if salvation were not obtainable? Why would he grant men power to heal illness and afflictions if we just die and rot in the grave? Why would he give us the temple if exaltation in the celestial kingdom is out of reach?  The very fact that we have the priesthood is a sign of hope from God.

Helaman 8:11

Therefore he was constrained to speak more unto them saying: Behold, my brethren, have ye not read that God gave power unto one man, even Moses, to smite upon the waters of the Red Sea, and they parted hither and thither, insomuch that the Israelites, who were our fathers, came through upon dry ground, and the waters closed upon the armies of the Egyptians and swallowed them up?

When the Holy Spirit prompts us to testify, we should not avoid or ignore the prompting. To be constrained is to be compelled or driven forcefully to do something. For Latter-day Saints, the familiar feeling in fast and testimony meeting that forces you out of your seat to make the long walk to the pulpit is the constraint of the Spirit.

Helaman 8:10

And it came to pass that those people who sought to destroy Nephi were compelled because of their fear, that they did not lay their hands on him; therefore he began again to speak unto them, seeing that he had gained favor in the eyes of some, insomuch that the remainder of them did fear.

Right can stand alone, but wrong requires consensus.

Helaman 7:17-18

O repent ye, repent ye! Why will ye die? Turn ye, turn ye unto the Lord your God. Why has he forsaken you? It is because you have hardened your hearts; yea, ye will not hearken unto the voice of the good shepherd; yea, ye have provoked him to anger against you.

The theme is repeated many times: God forsakes us only when we first forsake him. He will never leave us as long as we do not leave him. But when we choose to turn our backs, he will not force us to turn back towards him. He can whisper, plead, and even afflict us to try to get our attention, but if we choose deafness and hardness of heart, the laws of agency and justice require that he let us go our way. It must be terribly frustrating and heart-rending for him, but the alternative -- to use force and rob us of agency -- is counter to his nature and the laws by which he lives. Our fate is literally in our own hands and hearts.

Helaman 6:35-36

And thus we see that the Spirit of the Lord began to withdraw from the Nephites, because of the wickedness and the hardness of their hearts. And thus we see that the Lord began to pour out his Spirit upon the Lamanites, because of their easiness and willingness to believe in his words.

Our agency determines our outcome. Bad choices will overcome all the good teachings of a lifetime, and good choices motivated by righteous desires can overcome a lifetime of bad habits and wicked traditions. We get what we truly want. "Easiness" and "willingness" are the keys. How easy we are to be influenced one way out the other, and our willingness to be enticed in one direction or another, are the determining factors. It is always our choice. We choose the path, but we inherit the consequences. As the saying goes, when you pick up one end of the stick, you pick up the other.

Helaman 6:30

And behold, it is he who is the author of all sin. And behold, he doth carry on his works of darkness and secret murder, and doth hand down their plots, and their oaths, and their covenants, and their plans of awful wickedness, from generation to generation according as he can get hold upon the hearts of the children of men.

Satan gets a hold of our hearts only to the degree that we grant him access. He has no power but what we give him. He wants to fully manipulate us but can do so only if we let him. God, on the other hand, has the power, but he will never use it to control us. He wants us to yield to him out of love, and he will expand our power as we do so.

Helaman 6:17

For behold, the Lord had blessed them so long with the riches of the world that they had not been stirred up to anger, to wars, nor to bloodshed; therefore they began to set their hearts upon their riches; yea, they began to seek to get gain that they might be lifted up one above another; therefore they began to commit secret murders, and to rob and to plunder, that they might get gain.

The pride cycle seems to never end among the Nephites. They cannot stand prosperity. Remember for whom the Book of Mormon was written. Modern American society and First World countries have prospered for a long time, and now we are beginning to see the same evidence that the cycle is working among us. Wickedness, selfishness, greed and vanity are becoming rampant. We as a people worship wealth and power. God has become irrelevant. The stories of the Nephite cycle are written in the Book of Mormon to warn us of what awaits us. God will call this people to awake and repent through afflictions to come. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. What he does for one nation, he will do for others. Decline and suffering are inevitable, not to punish but to awaken and to humble. We face a time of severe testing.

Helaman 5:47

Peace, peace be unto you, because of your faith in my Well Beloved, who was from the foundation of the world.

Faith in Christ brings peace. We cannot be distraught by the calamities of the world if we believe Christ has overcome the world. We cannot despair of life of we believe Jesus is the Life. Our lives cannot seem too dark if we believe Jesus is the Light. Despite the trials, Christ has promised to not leave us comfortless.

Helaman 5:42

And it came to pass that they all did begin to cry unto the voice of him who had shaken the earth; yea, they did cry even until the cloud of darkness was dispersed.

It did not take these Lamanties long to receive forgiveness and deliverance. God is quick to forgive when we repent in sincerity. That does not mean, however, that repentance is cheap or easy. These people had many wrongs to repair and bad habits to overcome. They still had to change their lives in order to retain a remission of their sins. They would have to spend the rest of their lives learning the gospel, keeping the commandments, overcoming the natural man, and taking upon them the name of Christ. But initial forgiveness, pardon, and justification can come quickly through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Helaman 5:41

And Aminadab said unto them: You must repent, and cry unto the voice, even until ye shall have faith in Christ, who was taught unto you by Alma, and Amulek, and Zeezrom; and when ye shall do this, the cloud of darkness shall be removed from overshadowing you.

Aminadab's formula for deliverance is to repent and to pray until we have faith in Christ. The typical response is to say that we must have faith first and then pray. But faith is a gift for which we must pray and ask. Therefore we truly do pray until we receive the gift of faith.

Helaman 5:30

And it came to pass when they heard this voice, and beheld that it was not a voice of thunder, neither was it a voice of a great tumultuous noise, but behold, it was a still voice of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper, and it did pierce even to the very soul

The voice that calls us to repentance is a quiet, mild voice. It may rattle our bones and shake our foundations, but not because of its volume. God does not have to yell in our ear to get our attention. If we are tuned into his spirit, he can make the mildest of suggestions that can rock us to the core. A thought, feeling, or impression may be all he gives us. Yet it can change our whole life. Thus we cannot afford to keep ourselves perpetually distracted with the noise of the world. God wants to whisper to us, but we have to be listening.

Heleman 5:12

And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.

Satan cannot exercise control over those who are built on the Rock—Jesus Christ. This message is repeated many times. Having faith in Christ and building on his foundation does not exempt us from trials and storms. Faith enables us to withstand the storms and triumph over them. The formula for eternal success is E + R = O. It is not the Event but our Response to it that determines the Outcome.

Helaman 5:11

And he hath power given unto him from the Father to redeem them from their sins because of repentance; therefore he hath sent his angels to declare the tidings of the conditions of repentance, which bringeth unto the power of the Redeemer, unto the salvation of their souls.

Of all the powers given to Jesus, the power to redeem us is the greatest. Through this power Christ can right every wrong, repair every injustice, heal every wound, and remove every sin. He can bring equality to all who have suffered the inequalities of mortality. He has the power to make us an exalted seat right next to his on the throne of heaven, as if we were his equals. That is power indeed!

Helaman 5:10

And remember also the words which Amulek spake unto Zeezrom, in the city of Ammonihah; for he said unto him that the Lord surely should come to redeem his people, but that he should not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins.

To be redeemed, we have to leave our sins behind. We have to do all we can to put them away. We may not be able to do it perfectly by ourselves, but we have to turn ourselves in the right direction, which is the root of the word repentance. Only then can Christ redeem us. He can buy us back from the demands of justice only when we have made the effort to begin the transformation that he will finish. He is, after all, the Finisher of our faith. He will not save us against our will. We demonstrate our sincere desire for salvation by sincerely repenting. Every repentant sinner will be forgiven and rescued from justice. Those who knowingly turn their backs on God today with expectations that he will swoop in and save them at the last second will be sadly disappointed tomorrow when he doesn't show up. I reiterate, Christ will save every single person who truly and honestly wants to be saved in his kingdom. We cannot save ourselves, and we cannot buy a seat in heaven, but we have to prove our desires by our actions, however imperfect they may be.